Contingencies, Environmental and Legal Matters

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2019

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

CONTINGENCIES, ENVIRONMENTAL AND LEGAL MATTERS

CONTINGENCIES, ENVIRONMENTAL AND LEGAL MATTERS

Environmental Matters

The Company is involved in various claims relating to environmental matters at current and former plants and waste management sites. The Company engages or participates in remedial and other environmental compliance activities at certain of these sites. At other sites, it has been named as a potential responsible party pursuant to the federal Superfund Act and/or state Superfund laws comparable to the federal law for site remediation. The Company analyzes each individual site, considering the number of parties involved, the level of its potential liability or contribution relating to the other parties, the nature and magnitude of the hazardous wastes involved, the method and extent of remediation, the potential insurance coverage, the estimated legal and consulting expense with respect to each site and the time period over which costs are likely to be incurred. Based on this analysis, the Company estimates the clean-up costs and related claims for each site. The estimates are based in part on discussions with other potential responsible parties, governmental agencies and engineering firms.

The Company accrues for environmental matters when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the liability can be reasonably estimated based on current laws and existing technologies. The accruals are adjusted periodically as assessment and remediation efforts progress or as additional technical or legal information becomes available. The Company's environmental liabilities, which are included in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as "Accrued expenses and other current liabilities" and "Other liabilities," totaled $16.5 million and $18.3 million at June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively, primarily driven by environmental remediation, clean-up costs and monitoring of sites that were either closed or disposed of in prior years. While uncertainty exists with respect to the amount and timing of its ultimate environmental liabilities, the Company does not currently anticipate any material losses in excess of the amount recorded. However, it is possible that new information about the sites, such as results of investigations, could make it necessary for the Company to reassess its potential exposure related to these environmental matters.

As of the date of this Quarterly Report, the Company believes it is not possible to develop an estimate of the range of reasonably possible environmental losses in excess of the Company's recorded liabilities and is unable to ascertain the ultimate aggregate amount of monetary liabilities or financial impacts with respect to these matters.

Legal Matters

From time to time, the Company is involved in various legal proceedings, investigations and/or claims in the normal course of its business. Although it cannot predict with certainty the ultimate resolution of these matters, which involve judgments that are inherently subjective, the Company believes that their resolutions, to the extent not covered by insurance, will not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.